2.4: Chapter 7: Considerations of Equitable Standards in the Implementation of Assistive Technology
Introduction
The creation of Alberta Education’s (2010) Inspiring Education Policy has helped to promote a shift in the focus of teaching towards student-centred learning, the expansion of traditional methods of instruction, and more license for creativity in instruction and programming. Within the guiding principles of Inspiring Education exist specific initiatives conducive to this shift. One of these initiatives, the Learning and Technology Framework Policy, provides a guide for educators in understanding how technology in the classroom increases opportunities and support for students (Alberta Education, 2010). This initiative has helped increase understanding among educators of the importance of technology in providing students with opportunities in the classroom that might not otherwise exist. With the increase of educational and instructional technology in classrooms, the need for technologies that assist and support students with special needs has become more obvious.
The interest among educators in using technologies to support students with disabilities has promoted the implementation of assistive technology in classrooms. Assistive technology is defined as “any item or piece of equipment or product system either acquired commercially, off the shelf, modified, or customized and used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities for individuals with disabilities” (Johnston et al., 2007, p. 4) . Many educators have a simplified understanding of assistive technology as technology and tools that support student learning by removing barriers and obstacles, increasing engagement, and promoting a feeling of success. The Alberta Government’s (2020) Inclusive Education Framework outlines the principles of inclusive education, including assistive technology as a key factor in supporting students with exceptional needs. The Alberta Government’s (2010) Inspiring Education Policy was created to provide pedagogical and ethical standards that outline inclusive education practices. These practices promote a sense of belonging through positive learning experiences for students, and address the need for educators to understand the importance of using assistive technology. These policies provide guidelines for supporting students with disabilities; however, no set educational government mandate ensures that the needs of students are met (Inclusive Education, 2020). Within these principles, guiding questions are asked around the implementation of assistive technologies in school. These questions consider issues such as how data is being used to inform the selection, implementation and evaluation of assistive technology for learning at the classroom, school and authority level, and what expertise and resources are available to support implementation of assistive technology for learning ( A Guide to Support Implementation: Essential Conditions [New Tab], Edmonton Regional Learning Consortium, 2016).
Vignette
Decisions around implementation of assistive technology in K-12 settings are made at the school level. The implications of this can be both negative and positive, as administration at schools may not view assistive technology as a necessary tool for students and may decide to allocate funding to the resources instead. For example, in my current role as an assistive technology consultant, I help make decisions about allocation of devices and equipment for students with special needs in the school district. Other schools may not have a specialist or consultant, or may not include them in decision-making.
During my time in this position, I have developed a process to determine which students receive assistive technology. When I started the position, there were no specific guidelines for this process. My experience as a special education teacher and special education consultant, using a multitude of assistive technologies to support students in their learning, guided my decisions on student access to assistive technology. To create a pedagogically sound policy, it was necessary to work with a multidisciplinary team to ensure that the needs of students were met. I collaborated with school psychologists, teachers in the field, learning consultants, and the educational technology team to develop a series of questions that outline a student’s learning needs, the professionals involved with the student, and how a device and applications would support their learning. Using a Google form, responses are collected in such a way that priority students can be identified. This process provides the information that I need to determine the device and programs that will best support a given student.
The struggle is that this process is sustainable only if the funding and the budget allow for it. With recent cutbacks and the possibility of the assistive technology budget diminishing, I have had to reimagine a different process that will still provide the necessary assistive technology to students with special needs. I have spoken with other school districts around the topic and about how they support students with assistive technology. Every school district seems to have a different process, and, in some cases, there is nothing in place. The question then arises, how should school districts implement a model of assistive technology for students with diverse needs that supports equitable standards?
Full Disclosure
Using Farrow’s (2016) framework for ethical perspectives, this paper will address the question above and consider why ethical perspectives need to be part of the implementation of assistive technology in classrooms, taking into consideration deontological, consequentialist, and virtue ethics.
There is a vast amount of research on the benefits of access to assistive technology for student learning. Assistive technology educator and researcher Joy Zabala is known for her work in this area, advocating for the successful implementation and evaluation of assistive technology in classrooms. Zabala et al. (2005) created the Student, Environments, Tasks, and Tools (SETT) framework as a guide for educators in using assistive technology. The SETT framework can guide educators in carefully assessing the needs of students in these areas and in making informed decisions in implementing and evaluating assistive technology tools (Zabala et al., 2005). The framework helps educators answer questions about individual student learning needs, such as who is involved supporting these students, what prior experience they have with students using the same or similar devices, and what comfort level they have with students using devices (Zabala et al., 2005).
The answers to these questions provide important insight into programming for a student’s unique learning needs. However, who within the school holds responsibility for using the SETT framework and assessing the assistive technology needs of a student? How is funding determined and allocated for students receiving support, and who ensures that the process is based on equitable standards? Equitable standards that should be considered are:
- sustainable process that provides equal access for all students,
- learning technologies that provide additional supports (not substitution of professional expertise for student’s assessment and achievement), and
- informed decision-making policies that are grounded in best practice and that consider student voice.
Privacy and Data Considerations with Using Supportive Technologies
Among the concerns raised about equitable standards in implementation and student use of assistive technology are the ethical issues related to privacy and informed consent with users. In the last decade, educational and assistive technologies have exploded, and teachers are using a myriad of educational programs to support student learning across the curriculum (Regan & Jesse, 2018). Assistive technologies have become popular among teachers as a way of increasing access to curriculum materials, and of adapting and differentiating instruction for students with exceptional needs. Many of these programs employ a personalized learning system, which is geared at providing students with lessons and activities based on their current academic levels. For example, programs such as Mathletics have built-in assessment, whereby students respond to a series of math questions, and their responses are used to identify their current math ability and grade level. A-Z Learning is a reading program that works in the same way, assessing students through standardized questions in order to determine a grade level for them to begin at and work through.
Deontological Theory
There are several ethical considerations related to the use of educational and assistive technology applications, specifically with personalized learning systems. These programs are intuitive, and the end result of initial and then ongoing interactions is a snapshot of a student’s ability, which informs how questions and activities are generated to focus on increasing the student’s skills. However, there is little information available on how a student’s information is used to determine their ability, and even less information on student demographics. In the case of students with special needs, their learning style may be quite different from the average student, and their achievement in certain areas may be lower than their capabilities if the program does not consider the accommodations that need to be in place for learner success.
Regan and Jesse (2018) state that “a critical ethical concern raised with personalized learning is whether such programs constitute tracking and sorting of students that might be considered discriminatory” (p. 168). They caution that in the United States, the tracking and sorting of students has led to divided classrooms of race, gender, and class. Today, tracking is happening behind a screen, hidden from students and parents (Regan & Jesse, 2018). When examined from a deontological perspective, which focuses on “responsibility, intention and duty” (Farrow, 2016, p. 102), attention should paid to understanding the intended use of these programs and to ensuring that teachers recognize that personalized learning systems collect student information without any consideration of their exceptional needs. These systems should be considered an additional or supplemental learning resource and not an authentic assessment of a student’s learning ability or needs. Furthermore, students and parents should be made aware of how these systems collect information and whether and how this information is used by teachers in planning and programming.
Consequentialist Theory
Most teachers use educational and assistive technology programs as an alternative means to support student learning. Personalized learning systems provide opportunities to provide students with engaging one-to-one learning. Bulger (2016) describes personalized learning systems as having the “potential to revolutionize learning” (p. 3) despite vague research findings on whether and how these systems do improve learning outcomes for students. This raises the question of how teachers are using these programs to improve students’ academic skills and whether they are an appropriate measure of achievement.
A second ethical consideration for the use of educational and assistive technologies for personalized learning is whether the use of these systems is replacing expertise available through school districts. Even the most intuitive and customized personalized learning system cannot replace the expertise of school professionals, whose responsibility and role is to assess, adapt, and help identify the best way to support students in their learning.
Virtue Theory
The use of personalized learning systems in K-12 classrooms is increasing at a rapid rate. School districts have an increased responsibility in deciding what educational applications can be used without the breach of student privacy. However, teachers have access to a vast range of free educational programs that can be downloaded and used without exploring the consequences. Very similar to the focus of virtue ethics on individual character and a strength on “making good choices,” teachers may unknowingly expose their students to programs that collect student’s data without consent and increase the risk of privacy concerns. The use of these programs in education has become mainstream, and the potential for personalized learning has been noted by Facebook developer Mark Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, invested US$45 billion into advancing personalized learning and establishing the Chan Zuckerberg Education initiative (Bulger, 2016). It is not surprising that educators are turning to technology to enhance and engage students when it is so widely supported by influential people in the digital world. Teachers want to make a difference for their students and to provide opportunities for personalized and individualized learning; however, they may not recognize the risks involved.
Summary
The use of personalized learning systems as digital tools to support diverse students’ learning needs requires close examination. Educators cannot rely on the results or scores that are often embedded in personalized learning systems as authentic assessment for student learning. All students — not only those with diverse learning needs — have unique learning abilities, approaches, and needs. Educators are responsible for understanding the abilities and needs of their students and for providing classroom experiences that tap into students’ strengths and help address needs.
Avoiding Harm and Risk in Implementation of Assistive Technologies
Vignette
The current COVID-19 crisis caused a major uprooting and shift for educators across the globe. When Premier Jason Kenney announced school closures on March 7, 2020 for most school districts across Alberta, superintendents and educators across the province responded to the situation with a plan for K-12 education to take place at home.
For many school districts, this meant a shift from in-class teaching to delivering curriculum content and connecting with students online. It also meant a complete reimagining of assessment and feedback for students. For some educators, this has proved a daunting shift — one for which they were not at all — while other teachers are adjusting to this change, having had some experience in the digital world of teaching and learning.
One of the major concerns for districts has been to ensure that students have access to technology at home in order to access the delivery of online content and to connect with their teachers. In my role working with assistive technology, the shift to remote teaching brought about many questions concerning how best to support students with diverse learning needs. I had to ensure that students had access to their assigned devices and also had support in using these devices at home. Some of questions that emerged as a result of the shift to online learning were as follows:
- How will students who are supported by assistive technology in schools gain access to their one-to-one device at home?
- Who is responsible for ensuring students’ continued support from assistive technologies?
- How will the one-to-one devices be distributed for home use and how will I manage their return?
- How much will it cost to ensure that students have access to technology?
- What about students who are not coded, and who use assistive technology at school, but do not have access to these technologies at home? (Reasons vary and include financial constraints, parent’s level of understanding of assistive technology resources, and so on.)
One of the many challenges that educators face in today’s classroom is ensuring that the unique needs of every student are met. Some students have mental health needs, and also social, behavioural, and emotional needs. For others, struggles in specific areas of learning pose cognitive support needs. The dynamics of a classroom can be overwhelming for many teachers, with pressure to meet provincial standards, combined with the need to support the emotional, physical, and learning needs of all students, and also to remain attuned to parent involvement and demands. Research findings from the Alberta Education’s Severe Disabilities Profile Review revealed that only “56 percent of the files related to students with severe disabilities met the ministry’s policy requirements” (Alberta Teacher’s Association, 2011, p. 1), which means that just over half of the needs of students with disabilities were being funded. As a result, the mandate Setting the Direction for Special Education in Alberta was launched in 2008, along with a framework for special education from Grades 1 through 12.
In 2009, a committee brought their concerns and suggestions to the Alberta Minister of Education. Informed by these concerns, a new framework was established based on the principle to create “one inclusive education system where each student is successful” (Alberta Teachers’ Association, 2011, p.1). The Inclusive Education committee’s vision was to ensure that the educational needs of students would be recognized as changing, and therefore so would their opportunities for success. The framework identifies three areas of priority — “curriculum, capacity and collaboration — and recommends a vision of an inclusive education that repositions education within the broader education system” (Alberta Teachers’ Association, 2011, p.1).
The inclusive education system is guided by fairness and equitable standards; however, issues can arise when resources and technology support come with a high price tag to districts, combined with varying levels of government funding. Although most educators are vigilant in reaching for the goal of fairness and equality for every student in their classroom, they are often met with the harsh fiscal reality that the educational and assistive technology that can better support students is simply not available.
Fast forward to the current situation in which educators are dealing with instruction and assessment for all of their students using some means of online delivery, and the issue becomes even more complex. How can educators ensure an equitable standard for all students now that they are teaching online, and students are learning from home?
Deontological Theory
The deontological theory “emphasizes moral obligation and the rule-based nature of morality” (Farrow, 2016, p. 101), which is the foundation for inclusive education practices both in the classroom and in the current ‘at home’ learning state. For some students, ensuring their needs are met requires adjustment to instructional methods and flexibility in the way they produce and show their work. Accommodations through technology can assist and support these students in a multitude of ways by removing barriers and obstacles to learning so that they can reach outcomes and goals. For some students with diverse learning needs, the shift to online learning has been positive, as lessons are delivered digitally, and assistive technology are in place to support students with areas of weakness, such as reading and writing. Some students have reported that they like learning at home and using Google Classroom, because they do not feel the same time constraints to complete their work that they sometimes experience in the classroom. However, the negative impact is also present, as some students struggle with attending to tasks and require more one-to-one support with learning strategies. Such students may become frustrated and anxious with the daunting task of independently managing their work. Furthermore, teachers are now faced with their own challenge of ensuring the success of students with assistive technologies. Rather than working with students and assessing their assistive technology needs at school, they are supporting students’ use of these technologies through online instruction.
Consequential Theory
In order to achieve a process for implementing assistive technology that ensures equity among students with diverse learning needs, all stakeholders must be involved. Both budget roadblocks and the need to train teachers in implementing technology in the classroom must be addressed and discussed with key individuals, such as administrators, parents, and district support service personel.
Bugaj and Norton-Darr’s (2010) Guide to Assistive Technology in Public Schools notes that “the ‘Education for All’ concept spreads from the top down as an administrative philosophy as well as from the bottom up with teachers working together within classrooms to ensure that every student is successful” (p. 124). The message surrounding the implementation of assistive technology in the classroom must come from school districts leaders and must communicate a universal commitment to supporting students online using a range of learning technologies.
Virtue Theory
Alberta Education’s Action on Inclusion framework (Alberta Teachers’ Association, 2011) promotes a universal understanding of inclusive classrooms. Therefore, it is imperative that teachers take on the responsibility for all their students in a value-based approach. Such an approach requires a shift in mindset, as teachers are ultimately responsible for ensuring the success of each student. A virtuous approach recognizes the importance of inclusive practices for students, while high expectations are put on teachers to provide differentiated instruction and accommodations that may include technologies they have no experience using.
Summary
When implementing assistive technologies in support of students with diverse learning needs, a collaborative approach between school administration, instructional leaders, learning coaches, and teachers must be taken. The approach must consider teachers as key in implementation, while also recognizing their different levels of comfort and experience when it comes to using technology. Now more than ever, as learning shifts completely online, teachers are experiencing increasing demands on their role. Building capacity by providing training to teachers has also shifted to online instruction; this approach to professional development works well for many teachers, but has proved challenging for some who are more comfortable with in-person training. Online professional development for teachers requires interactive instruction and participation in order to personalize learning and make it more meaningful (Francis & Jacobson, 2013). Interestingly, Francis & Jacobson (2013) found that teacher experiences with an online learning platform were consistent with the “inquiry approaches to learning” (p. 335) that exists in Alberta’s current curriculum. Francis & Jacobson (2013) found that participant engagement increased through collaboration and inquiry (using interactive whiteboard activities) which in turn sparked conversations amongst teacher participants around the important of discovery in learning with their students.
Although classrooms are now digital, educators and leaders are still required to carefully research digital resources and provide support and assistance to teachers in using them so they can ultimately do the same for their students. Learning communities, demonstrations, and hands-on activities need to be provided for teachers using effective approaches to online professional learning (citations needed here, see notes).
Implementing and Connecting Assistive Technology to Personal Autonomy, Multiple Perspectives, and Finding a Voice
Vignette
With the recent turn of events due to COVID-19 and learning at home, the question for many school districts was how to ensure that students with diverse learning needs had access to technology. In my role, I had to make plans for students to gain access to their assigned assistive technology devices to use at home. However, there were many students who did not have access to technology at home to engage in online learning. A process for administrators was determined for the families that required technology and did not have assigned assistive technology devices. These students may not be coded and therefore are ineligible to receive one-to-one assistive technology devices; however, these are very much in need given diverse financial dynamics and constraints at home. Leaders had to come together to explore the possibilities of using resources to support diverse student needs, including collecting older devices for students who did not have access to suitable technology.
There are certainly concerns around participant autonomy and independence when implementing assistive technology for students with diverse learning needs. For all matters, including education, parents and guardians are the voices and advocates for their children. Ultimately, parents make the final decision regarding programming and supports that will best meet the learning needs of their child and ensure their social and emotional wellbeing. Many factors can impact programming and the use of assistive technology, and these need to be discussed between schools and parents.
Deontological Theory
Ideally, when planning for a student’s education needs, teachers and parents work together to ensure a child’s learning needs are met. However, there can be obstacles and concerns that keep equitable access from being achieved. For example, there may be cultural or linguistic perspectives or beliefs about learners with special needs that prevent children from receiving such support. There may be resistance to specialized programming, including assistive technology. In other cases, there may be resistance to a child receiving specialized support for fear that the child looks different than their peers and becomes socially isolated. In situations like this, how does the school support the student through adaptation, modifications, and accommodations if the parents are resistant or do not agree with the recommendations? Is it the teacher’s duty and responsibility to implement support for a child even when a parent is not in agreement? Or, do parents make the final decision in such cases? Complex issues and situations and ethical decisions like this are amplified for schools, teachers, and parents during a pandemic and during a shift to remote instruction.
Consequential Theory
Within the consequential theory of ethics, “responsibility, intention and duty” (Farrow, 2016, p. 102) lie at the forefront. School districts that adhere to government mandates in this situation, such as Alberta’s Education Act (2020), behave according to the premise that educators are bound by law and respect “clear moral boundaries” (Farrow, 2016, p. 102). Alberta’s Education Act (2020) states that teachers are obligated to provide students with instruction and learning at their level as outlined in the curriculum and consistent with the goals outlined by the act. The Education Act (2020) also states that teachers must “encourage and foster learning in students” (p. 130) in a safe and caring environment. In the present context, educators may feel pressured by policy and less willing to adhere to a parent’s concern (voice). It becomes a balance between keeping a relationship with parents and respecting their rights and authority with their child, and also supporting a child’s right to education.
In situations concerning parent disagreement of supportive services for their children, it is important to keep an open and communicative relationship. Farrow (2016) describes how, according to the consequential theory, the balance between parent and teacher relationship represents the voice of a child by “incorporat[ing] multiple perspectives” (p. 102) and using “a practical approach” (p. 102). School boards are obligated to provide a safe and nurturing environment for children that encourages active learning, and this must include ensuring that students are supported in their academics and experience success. This legal and pedagogical responsibility involves addressing the role that parents play in their child’s education and supporting parents in understanding this responsibility. According to Alberta’s Education Act (2020), a parent’s responsibility in their child’s education includes “co-operat[ing] and collaborat[ing] with school staff to support the delivery of supports and services to the child” (p.38). For parents who may be hesitant due to cultural differences, this means including the multicultural team in helping parents understand the benefits to implementing supports, specifically assistive technologies. For parents concerned about their child standing out, the conversation should focus on how technology is used universally in the classroom as a digital resource that supports all students in their learning.
Virtue Theory
From a virtue ethics perspective, the key principle is that every student is entitled to the support they need to experience success in school. This perspective considers teachers and parents as the voice for a child with diverse learning needs. Furthermore, the equitable standards within the virtuous theory considers those students who may not have the voice of a parent to advocate for them. Unfortunately, there are students who do not receive support through assistive technology because their parents may not be involved in their schooling. The question then needs to be addressed, who is the voice for these students? Not all students who need support are coded, and if parents are not their voice to advocate for their child, then how can equitable standards be put in place to ensure these students receive the supports that they need to be successful?
Educators can be the voice for students and can help to advocate for the supports that will enable a student’s learning to occur. This is difficult when a student is not coded, as funding supports and resources are often established under these parameters. Teachers turn to their administration for support in purchasing devices and programs, but schools are also limited by budget constraints. In some cases, a solution may be to ask to reuse older devices for students who need them. While a viable option, this can snowball into other concerns, such as who maintains and supports these devices, if anyone does, and who determines which students receive them, and how (Floyd, 2010).
Summary
The key to ensuring students with diverse learning needs have a voice in their learning is establishing an educational support team of expertise for students, including teachers, parents, technology leaders, and therapists. The common interest among this team should focus on providing the student with the learning conditions and digital technologies that best support learning and also promote independence.
Conclusion
Over the last decade, there has been a major shift in schools toward including and supporting students with diverse learning needs in regular education instruction settings. This inclusion is a visual representation of society’s desire for progression in social justice. The extent to which inclusion exists from province to province is an indication of society’s willingness to embrace and promote fair and equitable social policies in education.
Implementing assistive technology into the classroom provides students with diverse learning needs with the opportunity for positive classroom experiences by removing barriers to learning and by providing tools for success. Ensuring equitable standards for all learners should be the foundation of any model of implementation of assistive technology. In recognizing these standards, teachers must be aware of obstacles that may exist with using assistive technology. Simpson et al. (2009) explain that “a ‘one size fits all’ approach is never appropriate for assistive technology selection. All students are different, and therefore their assistive technology needs are different” (p. 174). An effective and equitable model of implementing assistive technology for inclusive education will address and overcome budgetary constraints, involve meaningful and appropriate training for educators, consider and address parental concerns, and implement assistive technologies that are inclusive and universally accessible.
References
Alberta Education. (2013). Learning technology policy framework . Alberta Government. https://inspiring.education.alberta.ca/initiative/learning-and-technology-policy-framework/
Alberta Government. (2020). Inclusive education. https://www.alberta.ca/inclusive-education.aspx
Alberta Government. (2010). Inspiring education: A dialogue with Albertans. https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/45370ce9-3a90-4ff2-8735-cdb760c720f0/resource/2ee2452c-81d3-414f-892f-060caf40e78e/download/4492270-2010-inspiring-education-dialogue-albertans-2010-04.pdf
The Alberta Teachers’ Association. (2011, January). Alberta’s action on inclusion: Transforming diversity into possibility. Leadership Update, 7 (5), 1-3. https://www.teachers.ab.ca/SiteCollectionDocuments/ATA/Publications/School-Administrators/Leadership-Update/COMM-118-56%20v7n5.pdf
Bugaj, C. R., & Norton-Darr, S. (2010). Practical (and fun) guide to assistive technology in public schools: Building or improving your district’s at team . International Society for Tech in Ed. https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.lib.ucalgary.ca/lib/ucalgary-ebooks/detail.action?docID=3317679
Bulger, M. (2016). Personalized learning: The conversations we’re not having . Data and Society Research Institute. https://datasociety.net/pubs/ecl/PersonalizedLearning_primer_2016.pdf
Education Act, S.A. 2012, c E-0.3. (2020) https://www.qp.alberta.ca/1266.cfm?page=E00P3.cfm&leg_type=Acts&isbncln=9780779816774
Farrow, R. (2016). A framework for the ethics of open education. Open Praxis, 8 (2), 93-109. https://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.8.2.291
Floyd, K. (2010). Book and software review: The practical (and fun) guide to assistive technology in public schools.
Journal of Special Education Technology
,
25
(4), 65-66.
https://doi.org/10.1177/016264341002500407
Francis, K., & Jacobsen, M. (2013). Synchronous online collaborative professional development for elementary mathematics teachers. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning , 14 (3), 319-343. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v14i3.1460
Johnston, L., Beard, L. A., & Carpenter, L. B. (2007). Assistive technology: Access for all students. Columbus, OH: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.
Regan, P., & Jesse, J. (2018). Ethical challenges of edtech, big data and personalized learning: twenty-first century student sorting and tracking. Ethics And Information Technology , 21 (3), 167-179. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10676-018-9492-2
Simpson, G.C., McBride, R., Spencer, V.G., Lowdermilk, J. & Lynch, S. (2009). Assistive technology-supporting learners in inclusive classrooms. Kappa Delta Pi Record , 45(4), 172-175. https://doi.org/10.1080/00228958.2009.10516540
Zabala, J., Bowser, G., & Korsten, J. (2005). Sett and Resett: Concepts for AT Implementation. Closing The Gap, 23 (5), 1-4. https://www.rockyview.ab.ca/assets/archive/learning/teaching/assistive-technology/atl-assets/SETT.pdf
Appendix A
| Principle | Duties & Responsibilities (deontological theory) |
Outcomes
(consequentialist theory) |
Personal Development
(virtue theory) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full disclosure |
|
|
|
| Privacy, data security, and informed consent |
|
|
|
| Avoiding harm and minimizing risk |
|
|
|
| Autonomy and independence |
|
|
|


1.5: Normality
At the end of this section you should be able to answer the following questions:
- How would you define the concept of multivariate normality?
- What are three different methods for checking multivariate normality?
There are a number of underlying assumptions that go with parametric statistical testing (which is what we will be focusing on for the majority of this book).
If you are undertaking parametric tests, then one of the key assumptions is multivariate normality , or the assumption that the variables in your data are distributed normally.
Chances are you have all encountered an image of the bell curve throughout your academic studies. This bell curve represents a normal distribution.
There are a number of ways you can check for normality.
Your first option is to check multivariate normality by visually examining graphs of the data for each variable. For this type of checking, you will need to create a bar graph or a histogram. A basic visual inspection will often show if the data is normal or near to normal.
You can also check normality by looking at the skewness and kurtosis (S&K) of the distribution of your variables. Skewness looks at how the data is distributed horizontally. In other words, is the data all bunched up at one end of the graph. Kurtosis is the height of the distribution, and this should be neither too low nor too high. You will need to check if the curve is high and tight or flat and long. In an ideal distribution, the values assigned to S&K would be 0, however, there is nearly always some variance from normality in any dataset. S&K values of less than +/- 2.00 are generally considered to be close enough to normal for you to use parametric statistics.
Finally, a third way to check the normality of a data distribution is to use a dedicated normality test , which will be used one variable at a time. There are two main normality tests that researchers would typically use: the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test for samples larger than 50, and Shapiro-Wilk tests for samples less than 50. These tests assume that the distribution is normal. Therefore, if these tests are significant (i.e. p value <.05) it means that the data varies from the normal model and should be considered not normal.
If a continuous variable is found to be non-normal either from visual inspection, skewness and kurtosis values or a normality test, there are a number of ways to deal with this.
Firstly, you would want to check and see if there are any outliers in your data. If there are, it might be worth deleting them from the data set. You can also transform the variable into a logarithmic scale. Finally, if the violations are not too severe, you could just live with the non-normality of the variable and produce bootstrapped results. In any event, you will need to make mention of how you dealt with any non-normal data in the results section of your report or paper or thesis.


1.3: Text structure
In this textbook, the techniques and models that scientists and engineers need to design and analyse dynamical systems will be introduced step by step, starting from Newton’s laws. Eventually at the end of the textbook we will have discussed a toolbox of equations and techniques that can be valuable for your future career.
The text consists of different parts:
- Descriptions and explanations
- Derivations of key equations and concepts
- Concepts and techniques in dynamics
- Practical examples, and sample problems that illustrate the use of these techniques
Although derivations of equations might be skipped without following the main line of the textbook, it is highly recommended to read them, since they do provide more insight into the theory and demonstrate beautifully how Newton’s laws, despite their simplicity, can account for a tremendous set of complex phenomena in dynamics.
To highlight important concepts, they are introduced like this:
\[\sum_{j} m_{j} \overrightarrow{\boldsymbol{v}}_{j}\left(t_{1}\right)+\sum_{i, j} \int_{t_{1}}^{t_{2}} \overrightarrow{\boldsymbol{F}}_{i, j} \mathrm{~d} t=\sum_{j} m_{j} \overrightarrow{\boldsymbol{v}}_{j}\left(t_{2}\right) \tag{1.1} \label{1.1}\]
Similarly, derivations are marked like this:
Examples to illustrate how to apply the concepts and techniques are provided in an example environment, with the letter in front of the example indicating the difficulty level (S: simple, M: medium and A: advanced).
We consider the following example situation.
Exemplary solution
The dynamics of this system can be solved as follows.
Problems are included in these notes as follows:
| M Problem 1.1 This is a test problem.


10.9: Reading- Human Impact on Mass Wasting
Causing Mass Wasting
Humans can contribute to mass wasting in a few different ways:
- Excavation of slope or its toe
- Loading of slope or its crest
- Drawdown (of reservoirs)
- Deforestation
- Irrigation
- Mining
- Artificial vibration
- Water leakage from utilities
Prevention and Awareness
As already noted, we cannot prevent mass wasting in the long term as it is a natural and ongoing process; however, in many situations there are actions that we can take to reduce or mitigate its damaging effects on people and infrastructure. Where we can neither delay nor mitigate mass wasting, we should consider moving out of the way.
It is comforting to think that we can prevent some effects of mass wasting by mechanical means, such as the rock bolts in the road cut at Porteau Cove (Figure 1), or the drill holes used to drain water out of a slope, as was done at the Downie Slide, or the building of physical barriers, such as retaining walls. What we have to remember is that the works of humans are limited compared to the works of nature. The rock bolts in the road cut at Porteau Cove will slowly start to corrode after a few years, and within a few decades, many of them will begin to lose their strength. Unless they are replaced, they will no longer support that slope. Likewise, drainage holes at the Downie Slide will eventually become plugged with sediment and chemical precipitates, and unless they are periodically unplugged, their effectiveness will decrease. Eventually, unless new holes are drilled, the drainage will be so compromised that the slide will start to move again. This is why careful slope monitoring by geological and geotechnical engineers is important at these sites. The point here is that our efforts to “prevent” mass wasting are only as good as our resolve to maintain those preventive measures.
Delaying mass wasting is a worthy endeavor, of course, because during the time that the measures are still effective they can save lives and reduce damage to property and infrastructure. The other side of the coin is that we must be careful to avoid activities that could make mass wasting more likely. One of the most common anthropogenic causes of mass wasting is road construction, and this applies both to remote gravel roads built for forestry and mining and large urban and regional highways. Road construction is a potential problem for two reasons. First, creating a flat road surface on a slope inevitably involves creating a cut bank that is steeper than the original slope. This might also involve creating a filled bank that is both steeper and weaker than the original slope (Figure 2). Second, roadways typically cut across natural drainage features, and unless great care is taken to reroute the runoff water and prevent it from forming concentrated flows, over-saturating fill of materials can result.
Apart from water issues, engineers building roads and other infrastructure on bedrock slopes have to be acutely aware of the geology, and especially of any weaknesses or discontinuities in the rock related to bedding, fracturing, or foliation. If possible, situations like that at Porteau Cove (Figure 1) should be avoided — by building somewhere else — rather than trying to stitch the slope back together with rock bolts.
It is widely believed that construction of buildings on the tops of steep slopes can contribute to the instability of the slope. This is probably true, but not because of the weight of the building. As you’ll see by completing the exercise below, a typical house isn’t usually heavier than the fill that was removed from the hole in the ground made to build it. A more likely contributor to instability of the slope around a building is the effect that it and the changes made to the surrounding area have on drainage.
It is commonly believed that building a house (or some other building) at the top of a slope will add a lot of extra weight to the slope, which could contribute to slope failure. But what does a house actually weigh?  But most houses are built on foundations that are excavated into the ground. This involves digging a hole and taking some material away, so we need to subtract what that excavated material weighs. Assuming our 150 m2 house required an excavation that was 15 m by 11 m by 1 m deep, that’s 165 m 3 of “dirt,” which typically has a density of about 1.6 t per m 3 .
Calculate the weight of the soil that was removed and compare that with the weight of the house and its foundation.
If you’re thinking that building a bigger building is going to add more weight, consider that bigger buildings need bigger and deeper excavations, and in many cases the excavations will be into solid rock, which is much heavier than surficial materials.
You may wish to consider how a building might change the drainage on a slope. There are a number ways. Water can be collected by roofs, go into downspouts, and form concentrated flows that are directed onto or into the slope. Likewise drainage from nearby access roads, lawn irrigation, leaking pools, and septic systems can all alter the surface and groundwater flow in a slope.
Monitoring Mass Wasting
In some areas, it is necessary to establish warning systems so that we know if conditions have changed at a known slide area, or if a rapid failure, such as a debris flow, is actually on its way downslope. The Downie Slide above the Revelstoke Resevoir is monitored 24/7 with a range of devices, such as inclinometers (slope-change detectors), bore-hole motion sensors, and GPS survey instruments. A simple mechanical device for monitoring the nearby Checkerboard Slide (which is also above the Revelstoke Reservoir) is shown in Figure 3. Both of these are very slow-moving rock slides, but it’s very important to be able to detect changes in their rates of motion because at both of these locations a rapid failure would result in large bodies of rock plunging into the reservoir and sending a wall of water over the Revelstoke Dam, potentially destroying the nearby town of Revelstoke.
Mt. Rainier, a glacier-covered volcano in Washington State, has the potential to produce massive mudflows or debris flows (lahars) with or without a volcanic eruption. Over 100,000 people in the Tacoma, Puyallup, and Sumner areas are in harm’s way because they currently reside on deposits from past lahars (Figure 4). In 1998, a network of acoustic monitors was established around Mt. Rainier. The monitors are embedded in the ground adjacent to expected lahar paths. They are intended to provide warnings to emergency officials, and when a lahar is detected, the residents of the area will have anywhere from 40 minutes to three hours to get to safe ground.
Mitigating the Impacts of Mass Wasting
In situations where we can’t predict, prevent, or delay mass-wasting hazards, some effective measures can be taken to minimize the associated risk. For example, many highways in B.C. and western Alberta have avalanche shelters like that shown in Figure 5. In some parts of the world, similar features have been built to protect infrastructure from other types of mass wasting.
Debris flows are inevitable, unpreventable, and unpredictable in many parts of B.C., but nowhere more so than along the Sea-to-Sky Highway between Horseshoe Bay and Squamish. The results have been deadly and expensive many times in the past. It would be very expensive to develop a new route in this region, so provincial authorities have taken steps to protect residents and traffic on the highway and the railway. Debris-flow defensive structures have been constructed in several drainage basins, as shown in Figure 6. One strategy is to allow the debris to flow quickly through to the ocean along a smooth channel. Another is to capture the debris within a constructed basin that allows the excess water to continue through, but catches the debris materials.
Vulnerability to landslide hazards is a function of location, type of human activity, use, and frequency of landslide events. The effects of landslides on people and structures can be lessened by total avoidance of landslide hazard areas or by restricting, prohibiting, or imposing conditions on hazard-zone activity. Local governments can reduce landslide effects through land-use policies and regulations. Individuals can reduce their exposure to hazards by educating themselves on the past hazard history of a site and by making inquiries to planning and engineering departments of local governments. They can also obtain the professional services of an engineering geologist, a geotechnical engineer, or a civil engineer, who can properly evaluate the hazard potential of a site, built or unbuilt.
The hazard from landslides can be reduced by avoiding construction on steep slopes and existing landslides, or by stabilizing the slopes. Stability increases when ground water is prevented from rising in the landslide mass by (1) covering the landslide with an impermeable membrane, (2) directing surface water away from the landslide, (3) draining ground water away from the landslide, and (4) minimizing surface irrigation. Slope stability is also increased when a retaining structure and/or the weight of a soil/rock berm are placed at the toe of the landslide or when mass is removed from the top of the slope.
Finally, in situations where we can’t do anything to delay, predict, contain, or mitigate slope failures, we simply have to have the sense to stay away. There is a famous example of this in B.C. at a site known as Garibaldi, 25 km south of Whistler. In the early 1980s the village of Garibaldi had a population of about 100, with construction underway on some new homes, and plans for many more.
In the months that followed the deadly 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens in Washington State, the B.C. Ministry of Transportation commissioned a geological study that revealed that a steep cliff known as The Barrier (Figure 7) had collapsed in 1855, leading to a large rock avalanche, and that it was likely to collapse again unpredictably, putting the village of Garibaldi at extreme risk. In an ensuing court case, it was ruled that the Garibaldi site was not a safe place for people to live. Those who already had homes there were compensated, and everyone else was ordered to leave.
Contributors and Attributions
- Revision, adaption, and original content. Authored by : Kimberly Schulte and Lumen Learning. Provided by : Lumen Learning. License : CC BY: Attribution
- Preventing, Delaying, Monitoring, and Mitigating Mass Wasting. Authored by : Steven Earle. Provided by : BC Campus. Located at : https://opentextbc.ca/geology/chapter/15-3-preventing-delaying-monitoring-and-mitigating-mass-wasting/ . Project : Physical Geology. License : CC BY: Attribution
- Landslide Types and Processes. Provided by : USGS. Located at : http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2004/3072/fs-2004-3072.html . License : Public Domain: No Known Copyright
- Mount Rainier over Tacoma. Authored by : Lyn Topinka. Provided by : USGS. Located at : http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Imgs/Jpg/Rainier/Images/Rainier84_mount_rainier_and_tacoma_08-20-84.jpg . License : Public Domain: No Known Copyright


12.12.1: Introduction
The assistance of self-administration of medications by Home Health Aides is not allowed in every state or country. You should be specifically trained and assigned to provide assistance with medications. Personal Care Aides are not allowed to assist with administration of medication under any circumstance .
Assisting with self-administration of medications is different than administering medications. Only licensed providers such as physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, and licensed practical nurses may administer medications to patients. Home Health Aides may ASSIST patients with self-administration of medication. Personal Care Aides must never assist with medications in any way.
Assisting with medications means the HHA may remind patients about taking their medications, bring the medication to the patient, and bring other equipment needed to take the medication such as an inhaler to the patient. The HHA may bring liquid such as water to the patient so they can take their medication. Home Health Aides should assist the patient into the correct position so the patient may take their medicine. For example, for medications taken by mouth the patient should be in a fully upright position. This helps to prevent choking and allows the medication to move down the esophagus into the stomach. Medication should never be crushed unless the Care Plan specifically states. Remember to always keep medications stored in a locked area.
If the Home Health Aide notices a patient taking a medication incorrectly or if the patient has a reaction to the medication the HHA should inform the supervisor.If medications are dropped or mixed up with other medications the HHA should inform the supervisor. If the HHA becomes aware of herbs, supplements, and medications the patient is taking and which they have not told the healthcare team about they should inform their supervisor.
Home Health Aides may also show the patient the medication and read the label to the patient so that the right patient, right medication, right dose, right time, and right route may be checked. Understanding and following the 5 Rights of Medications helps to avoid medication errors. The Five Rights of Medications include: The Right Patient, The Right Medication, The Right Dose, The Right Time, and the Right Route. If Home Health Aides ever have a concern about any of these rights, they should speak to their supervisor immediately. The safety and well-being of a patient depends on their Home Health Aide.


29.3: Lab Report
Exercise A.
For each microscope slide available in lab draw the tissue and complete the following:
- Specific name of tissue (ex: blood)
- General category of tissue (ex: connective)
- Location of tissue (ex: found in blood vessels)
- Function of tissue (ex: carry oxygen, carbon dioxide, nutrients)
For all microscope drawings include the total magnification under which you drew the tissue and label major structures or parts you can see in your drawing (ex: erythrocyte, leukocyte).
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Much of your college and professional life will be spent solving problems; some will be complex, such as deciding on a career, and require time and effort to come up with a solution. Others will be small, such as deciding what to eat for lunch, and will allow you to make a quick decision based entirely on your own experience. But, in either case, when coming up with the solution and deciding what to do, follow the same basic steps.
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Define the problem.
 What is the real issue? Why is it a problem? What are the root causes? What kinds of outcomes or actions do you expect to generate to solve the problem? What are some of the key characteristics that will make a good choice: Timing? Resources? Availability of tools and materials? For more complex problems, it helps to actually write out the problem and the answers to these questions. Can you clarify your understanding of the problem by using metaphors to illustrate the issue?
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Narrow the problem.
Many problems are made up of a series of smaller problems, each requiring its own solution. Can you break the problem into different facets? What aspects of the current issue are “noise” that should not be considered in the problem solution? (Use critical thinking to separate facts from opinion in this step.)
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Generate possible solutions.
List all your options. Use your creative thinking skills in this phase. Did you come up with the second “right” answer, and the third or the fourth? Can any of these answers be combined into a stronger solution? What past or existing solutions can be adapted or combined to solve this problem?
Why do you think it is important to provide multiple solutions when you’re going through the steps to solve problems? Typically, you’ll end up only using one solution at a time, so why expend the extra energy to create alternatives? If you planned a wonderful trip to Europe and had all the sites you want to see planned out and reservations made, you would think that your problem-solving and organizational skills had quite a workout. But what if when you arrived, the country you’re visiting is enmeshed in a public transportation strike experts predict will last several weeks if not longer? A back-up plan would have helped you contemplate alternatives you could substitute for the original plans. You certainly cannot predict every possible contingency—sick children, weather delays, economic downfalls—but you can be prepared for unexpected issues to come up and adapt more easily if you plan for multiple solutions.
Group Think: Effective Brainstorming
Brainstorming is a process of generating ideas for solutions in a group. This method is very effective because ideas from one person will trigger additional ideas from another. The following guidelines make for an effective brainstorming session:
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Decide who should moderate the session. That person may participate, but his main role is to keep the discussion flowing.
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Define the problem to be discussed and the time you will allow to consider it.
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Write all ideas down on a board or flip chart for all participants to see.
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Encourage everyone to speak.
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Do not allow criticism of ideas.
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ideas are good during a brainstorm. Suspend disbelief until after the session. Remember a wildly impossible idea may trigger a creative and feasible solution to a problem.
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Choose the best solution.
Use your critical thinking skills to select the most likely choices. List the pros and cons for each of your selections. How do these lists compare with the requirements you identified when you defined the problem? If you still can’t decide between options, you may want to seek further input from your brainstorming team.
Decisions, Decisions
You will be called on to make many decisions in your life. Some will be personal, like what to major in, or whether or not to get married. Other times you will be making decisions on behalf of others at work or for a volunteer organization. Occasionally you will be asked for your opinion or experience for decisions others are making. To be effective in all of these circumstances, it is helpful to understand some principles about decision making.
First, define who is responsible for solving the problem or making the decision. In an organization, this may be someone above or below you on the organization chart but is usually the person who will be responsible for implementing the solution. Deciding on an academic major should be your decision, because
you
will have to follow the course of study. Deciding on the boundaries of a sales territory would most likely be the sales manager who supervises the territories, because he or she will be responsible for producing the results with the combined territories. Once you define who is responsible for making the decision, everyone else will fall into one of two roles: giving input, or in rare cases, approving the decision.
Understanding the role of input is very important for good decisions. Input is sought or given due to experience or expertise, but it is up to the decision maker to weigh the input and decide whether and how to use it. Input should be fact based, or if offering an opinion, it should be clearly stated as such. Finally, once input is given, the person giving the input must support the other’s decision, whether or not the input is actually used.
Consider a team working on a project for a science course. The team assigns you the responsibility of analyzing and presenting a large set of complex data. Others on the team will set up the experiment to demonstrate the hypothesis, prepare the class presentation, and write the paper summarizing the results. As you face the data, you go to the team to seek input about the level of detail on the data you should consider for your analysis. The person doing the experiment setup thinks you should be very detailed, because then it will be easy to compare experiment results with the data. However, the person preparing the class presentation wants only high-level data to be considered because that will make for a clearer presentation. If there is not a clear understanding of the decision-making process, each of you may think the decision is yours to make because it influences the output of your work; there will be conflict and frustration on the team. If the decision maker is clearly defined upfront, however, and the input is thoughtfully given and considered, a good decision can be made (perhaps a creative compromise?) and the team can get behind the decision and work together to complete the project.
Finally, there is the approval role in decisions. This is very common in business decisions but often occurs in college work as well (the professor needs to approve the theme of the team project, for example). Approval decisions are usually based on availability of resources, legality, history, or policy.
Key Takeaways
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Effective problem solving involves critical and creative thinking.
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The four steps to effective problem solving are the following:
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Define the problem
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Narrow the problem
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Generate solutions
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Choose the solution
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Brainstorming is a good method for generating creative solutions.
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Understanding the difference between the roles of deciding and providing input makes for better decisions.
Checkpoint Exercises
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Gather a group of three or four friends and conduct three short brainstorming sessions (ten minutes each) to generate ideas for alternate uses for peanut butter, paper clips, and pen caps. Compare the results of the group with your own ideas. Be sure to follow the brainstorming guidelines. Did you generate more ideas in the group? Did the quality of the ideas improve? Were the group ideas more innovative? Which was more fun? Write your conclusions here.
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Using the steps outlined earlier for problem solving, write a plan for the following problem: You are in your second year of studies in computer animation at Jefferson Community College. You and your wife both work, and you would like to start a family in the next year or two. You want to become a video game designer and can benefit from more advanced work in programming.
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Define the problem: What is the core issue? What are the related issues? Are there any requirements to a successful solution? Can you come up with a metaphor to describe the issue?
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Narrow the problem: Can you break down the problem into smaller manageable pieces? What would they be?
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Generate solutions: What are at least two “right” answers to each of the problem pieces?
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Choose the right approach: What do you already know about each solution? What do you still need to know? How can you get the information you need? Make a list of pros and cons for each solution.
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11.4: §79. Turning Diminutive Nouns into Verbs
By way of a postscript to this chapter, notice how Latin could make denominative verbs out of the “little” nouns that we met in Chapter 7 (§52, §53, §54, §56). Once forma (“shape”) had been diminished to formula (“little shape”), there could be a verb formul-are , formulatus —whence English formulate and formulation . Similarly, circulus ( < circus ) produced circul-are , circul-atus , English circ ulate and circulation . From unda (“wave”) came the diminutive undula (“little wave”); to undulate is “to make little waves”—a synonym of fluctuate . Examine this progression: calx , calc-is (“stone”) > calc-ulus (“little stone”) > verb calcul-are , calcul-atus > noun calculat-io > E calculation . If we are to analyse calculation , we should identify and explain each of the elements in calc-ul-at-io . Here is an analysis of capitulation : < L. capitulatio : capit – ( caput , “head”) + – ul – (diminutive suffix) + – at – (perfect participle of denominative verb capitulare ) + – io (noun suffix).


6.2: Websites
Changing Aging – Challenging Conventional Views on Aging
Website and blog dedicated to a cultural shift about how aging is view by society, and how care is provided in communities. You can also find information about the Green House philosophy of care . See the “Categories” Section for information on culture change, embracing elderhood and more.
Village Movement – Village to Village Network
Village to Village Network (VtV) is a national peer to peer network to help establish and continuously improve management of their own villages whether in large metropolitan areas, rural towns or suburban settings. The mission of VtV is to enable communities to establish and effectively manage aging in community organizations initiated and inspired by their members.
The Eden Alternative is an international, non-profit organization dedicated to creating quality of life for elders and their care partners, wherever they may live. Through education, consultation, and outreach, the Eden Alternative offers person-directed principles and practices that support the unique needs of different living environments, ranging from the nursing home to the neighborhood street.
Pioneer Network supports models where elders live in open, diverse, caring communities. Pioneers are working for deep system change by both evolutionary and revolutionary means, using Pioneer values and principles as the foundations for change. In-depth change in systems requires change in governmental policy and regulation; change in the individual’s and society’s attitudes toward aging and elders; change in elders’ attitudes towards themselves and their aging; and change in the attitudes and behavior of caregivers toward those for whom they care. We refer to this work as culture change. Our aim is nothing less than transforming the culture of aging in America.
Improving the lives of children, youth, and older adults through intergenerational collaboration, public policies and programs.


10: Fixed-Axis Rotation Introduction
We begin to address rotational motion in this chapter, starting with fixed-axis rotation. Fixed-axis rotation describes the rotation around a fixed axis of a rigid body; that is, an object that does not deform as it moves. We will show how to apply all the ideas we’ve developed up to this point about translational motion to an object rotating around a fixed axis. In the next chapter, we extend these ideas to more complex rotational motion, including objects that both rotate and translate, and objects that do not have a fixed rotational axis.
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- 10.1: Prelude to Fixed-Axis Rotation Introduction
- In previous chapters, we described motion (kinematics) and how to change motion (dynamics), and we defined important concepts such as energy for objects that can be considered as point masses. Point masses, by definition, have no shape and so can only undergo translational motion. However, we know from everyday life that rotational motion is also very important and that many objects that move have both translation and rotation.
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- 10.2: Rotational Variables
- The angular position of a rotating body is the angle the body has rotated through in a fixed coordinate system, which serves as a frame of reference. The angular velocity of a rotating body about a fixed axis is defined as ω(rad/s), the rotational rate of the body in radians per second. If the system’s angular velocity is not constant, then the system has an angular acceleration. The instantaneous angular acceleration is the time derivative of angular velocity.
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- 10.3: Rotation with Constant Angular Acceleration
- The kinematics of rotational motion describes the relationships among rotation angle, angular velocity and acceleration, and time. For constant angular acceleration, the angular velocity varies linearly, so the average angular velocity is 1/2 the initial plus final angular velocity over a given time period. A graphical analysis involves finding the area under an angular velocity-vs.-time or angular acceleration-vs.-time graph to get the change in angular displacement and velocity, respectively.
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- 10.4: Relating Angular and Translational Quantities
- The linear kinematic equation have the rotational counterparts in which x = θ, v = ω, a = α. A system undergoing uniform circular motion has a constant angular velocity, but points at a distance r from the rotation axis have a linear centripetal acceleration. A system undergoing nonuniform circular motion has an angular acceleration and therefore has both a linear centripetal and linear tangential acceleration at a point a distance r from the axis of rotation.
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- 10.5: Moment of Inertia and Rotational Kinetic Energy
- The rotational kinetic energy is the kinetic energy of rotation of a rotating rigid body or system of particles. The moment of inertia for a system of point particles rotating about a fixed axis is the sum of the product between the mass of each point particle and the distance of the point particles to the rotation axis. In systems that are both rotating and translating, conservation of mechanical energy can be used if there are no nonconservative forces at work.
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- 10.6: Calculating Moments of Inertia
- Moments of inertia can be found by summing or integrating over every ‘piece of mass’ that makes up an object, multiplied by the square of the distance of each ‘piece of mass’ to the axis. The parallel axis theorem makes it possible to find an object's moment of inertia about a new axis of rotation once it is known for a parallel axis. The moment of inertia for a compound object is simply the sum of the moments of inertia for each individual object that makes up the compound object.
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- 10.7: Torque
- The magnitude of a torque about a fixed axis is calculated by finding the lever arm to the point where the force is applied and multiplying the perpendicular distance from the axis to the line upon which the force vector lies by the magnitude of the force. The sign of the torque is found using the right hand rule. The net torque can be found from summing the individual torques about a given axis.
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- 10.8: Newton’s Second Law for Rotation
- Newton’s second law for rotation says that the sum of the torques on a rotating system about a fixed axis equals the product of the moment of inertia and the angular acceleration. In the vector form of Newton’s second law for rotation, the torque vector is in the same direction as the angular acceleration. If the angular acceleration of a rotating system is positive, the torque on the system is also positive, and if the angular acceleration is negative, the torque is negative.
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- 10.9: Work and Power for Rotational Motion
- The incremental work in rotating a rigid body about a fixed axis is the sum of the torques about the axis times the incremental angle. The total work done to rotate a rigid body through an angle θ about a fixed axis is the sum of the torques integrated over the angular displacement. The work-energy theorem relates the rotational work done to the change in rotational kinetic energy: W_AB = K_B − K_A. The power delivered to a system that is rotating about a fixed axis is the torque times the angul
Thumbnail: Brazos wind farm in west Texas. As of 2012, wind farms in the US had a power output of 60 gigawatts, enough capacity to power 15 million homes for a year. (credit: modification of work by “ENERGY.GOV”/Flickr).


10.4: Details of Eukaryotic mRNA Processing
Eukaryotic mRNA primary transcripts undergo extensive processing, including splicing, capping and, polyadenylation . The steps described here are considered in order of (sometimes overlapping!) occurrence. We begin with splicing, an mRNA phenomenon.
A. Spliceosomal Introns
Bacterial gene coding regions are continuous. The discovery of eukaryotic split genes with introns and exons came as quite a surprise. Not only did it seem incongruous for evolution to have stuck irrelevant DNA in the middle of coding DNA, no one could have dreamt up such a thing! For their discovery of split genes, by Richard J. Roberts and Phillip A. Sharp shared the Nobel Prize for Physiology in 1993. In fact, all but a few eukaryotic genes are split, and some have one, two (or more than 30-50!) introns separating bits of coding DNA, the exons . Splicing is summarized below.
Splicing involves a number of small ribonuclear proteins ( snRNPs ). snRNPs are particles composed of RNA and proteins. They bind to specific sites in an mRNA and then direct a sequential series of cuts and ligations (the splicing ) necessary to process the mRNAs.
The role of snRNPs in splicing pre-mRNAs is illustrated below.
snRNP binding to a pair of splice sites flanking an intron in a pre-mRNA forms the spliceosome that completes the splicing, including removal of the lariat (the intermediate structure of the intron). The last step is to ligate exons into a continuous mRNA with all its codons intact and ready for translation. Spliceosome action is summarized below.
194 The Discovery of Split Genes
B. Specific Nuclear bodies and their associated proteins facilitate the assembly and function of the SnRNPs
Recall the organization of nuclei facilitated by nuclear bodies. Cajal bodies ( CBs ) and Gems are nuclear bodies that are similar in size and have related functions in assembling spliceosomal SnRNPs. Some splicing defects correlate with mutations in the coil protein that associate with Cajal bodies; others correlate with mutations in SMN proteins normally associated with Gems. An hypothesis was that CBs and Gems interact in SnRNP and spliceosome assembly…, but how? Consider the results of an experiment in which antibodies to coilin and the SMN protein were localized in undifferentiated and differentiated neuroblastoma cells.
A and C are undifferentiated cells in culture; B and D are cells that were stimulated to differentiate. In the fluorescence micrographs at the right, arrows point to fluorescent nuclear bodies. The coilin protein is associated with CBs and SMN is found in Gems. Therefore, we expect that fluorescent antibodies to coilin (green) will localize to CBs and antibodies to SMN protein (red) will bind to Gems. This is what happens in the nuclei of undifferentiated cells (panel C). But in panel D, the two antibodies colocalize, suggesting that the CBs and Gems aggregate in the differentiated cells. This would explain the need for both functional coilin and SMN protein to produce functional SnRNPs. The CBs and Gems may be aggregating in differentiated cells due to an observed increase in expression of the SMN protein. This could lead to more active Gems more able to associate with the CBs.
This and similar experiments demonstrate that different nuclear bodies do have specific functions. They are not random structural artifacts, have evolved to organize nuclear activities in time and space in ways that are essential to the cell.
C. Group I and Group II Self-Splicing Introns
While Eukaryotic Spliceosomal introns are spliced using snRNPs as described above, Group I or Group II introns are removed by different mechanisms. Group I introns interrupt mRNA and tRNA genes in bacteria and in mitochondrial and chloroplast genes. They are occasionally found in bacteriophage genes, but rarely in nuclear genes, and then only in lower eukaryotes. Group I introns are self-splicing ! Thus, they are ribozymes that do not require snRNPs or other proteins. Instead, they fold into a secondary stem-loop structure that positions catalytic nucleotides at appropriate splice sites, excise themselves, and re-ligate the exons. Group II introns in chloroplast and mitochondrial rRNA, mRNA, tRNA and some bacterial mRNAs can be quite long, form complex stem-loop tertiary structures, and self-splice, at least in a test tube! However, Group II introns encode proteins required for their own splicing in vivo . Like spliceosomal introns, they form a lariat structure at an A residue branch site. All this suggests that the mechanism of spliceosomal intron splicing evolved from that of Group II introns.
D. So, Why Splicing?
The puzzle implied by the question of course is why higher organisms have split genes in the first place. While the following discussion can apply to all splicing, it will reference mainly spliceosomal introns. Here are some answers to the question “Why splicing?”
- Introns in nuclear genes are typically longer (often much longer!) than exons. Since they are non-coding, they are large targets for mutation. In effect, noncoding DNA, including introns can buffer the ill effects of random mutations .
- You may recall that gene duplication on one chromosome (and loss of a copy from its homolog) arise from unequal recombination (non-homologous crossing over). It occurs when similar DNA sequences align during synapsis of meiosis. In an organism that inherits a chromosome with both gene copies, the duplicate can accumulate mutations as long as the other retains original function. The diverging gene then becomes part of a pool of selectable DNA, the grist of evolution, in the descendants of organisms that inherit the duplicated genes, increasing species diversity. Unequal recombination can also occur between similar sequences (e.g., in introns) in the same or different genes. Introns can also enable the sharing of exons between genes. After unequal recombination between introns flanking an exon, one gene will acquire another exon while the other will lose it. Once again, as long as an organism retains a copy of the participating genes with original function, the organism can make the required protein and survive. Meanwhile, the gene with the extra exon may produce the same protein, but one with a new structural domain and function. Like a complete duplicate gene, one with a new exon and added function is in the pool of selectable DNA. Thus, this phenomenon of exon shuffling increases species diversity ! The evidence indicates that exon shuffling has occurred, creating proteins with different overall functions that nonetheless share at least one domain and one common function. An example discussed earlier involves calcium-binding proteins that regulate many cellular processes. Structurally related calcium (Ca++) binding domains are common to many otherwise structurally and functionally unrelated proteins. Consider exon shuffling in the unequal crossover (non-homologous recombination) illustrated below.
In this example, regions of strong similarity in different (non-homologous) introns in the same gene align during synapsis of meiosis. Unequal crossing over between the genes inserts exon C in one of the genes. The other gene loses the exon (not shown in the illustration). In sum, introns are buffers against deleterious mutations , and equally valuable, are potential targets for gene duplication and exon shuffling. This makes introns key players in creating genetic diversity, the hallmark of evolution .
E. Capping
A methyl guanosine cap added 5’-to-5’ to an mRNA functions in part to help mRNAs leave the nucleus and associate with ribosomes. The cap is added to an exposed 5’ end, even as transcription and splicing are still in progress. A capping enzyme places a methylated guanosine residue at the 5’-end of the mature mRNA. The 5’ cap structure is shown below (check marks are 5’-3’ linked nucleotides).
F. Polyadenylation
After transcription termination, poly(A) polymerase catalyzes the addition of multiple AMP residues (several hundred in some cases) to the 3’ terminus by the enzyme. The enzyme binds to an AAUAA sequence near the 3’ end of an mRNA and begins to catalyze the addition of the adenosine monophosphates. The AAUAA poly(A) recognition site is indicated in red in the illustration of polyadenylation shown below.
The result of polyadenylation is a 3’ poly (A) tail whose functions include assisting in the transit of mRNAs from the nucleus and regulating the half-life of mRNAs in the cytoplasm. The poly (A) tail shortens each time a ribosome completes translating the mRNA.


15.8: For Further Exploration
Articles
Berman, B.  Astronomy (September 2013): 22. Up-to-date review of how events on the Sun can hurt our civilization.
Frank, A. “Blowin’ in the Solar Wind.” Astronomy (October 1998): 60. On results from the SOHO spacecraft.
Holman, G. “The Mysterious Origins of Solar Flares.” Scientific American (April 2006): 38. New ideas involving magnetic reconnection and new observations of flares.
James, C. “Solar Forecast: Storm Ahead.” Sky & Telescope (July 2007): 24. Nice review on the effects of the Sun’s outbursts and on Earth and how we monitor “space weather.”
Schaefer, B. “Sunspots That Changed the World.” Sky & Telescope (April 1997): 34. Historical events connected with sunspots and solar activity.
Schrijver, C. and Title, A. “Today’s Science of the Sun.” Sky & Telescope (February 2001): 34; (March 2001): 34. Excellent reviews of recent results about the solar atmosphere.
Wadhwa, M. “Order from Chaos: Genesis Samples the Solar Wind.” Astronomy (October 2013): 54. On a satellite that returned samples of the Sun’s wind.
Websites
Dr. Sten Odenwald’s “Solar Storms” site: http://www.solarstorms.org/ .
ESA/NASA’s Solar & Heliospheric Observatory: http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov . A satellite mission with a rich website to explore.
High Altitude Observatory Introduction to the Sun: https://www2.hao.ucar.edu/Education/sun-pictorial-introduction . For beginners.
NASA’s Solar Missions: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/missions/index.html . Good summary of the many satellites and missions NASA has.
NOAA Profile of Space Weather: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/images/u33/primer_2010_new.pdf . A primer.
NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center Information Pages: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/education-and-outreach . Includes primers, videos, a curriculum and training modules.
Nova Sun Lab: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/labs/lab/sun/ . Videos, scientist profiles, a research challenge related to the active Sun from the PBS science program.
Space Weather: Storms on the Sun: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/images/u33/swx_booklet.pdf . An illustrated booklet from NOAA.
Stanford Solar Center: http://solar-center.stanford.edu/ . An excellent site with information for students and teachers.
Apps
These can tell you and your students more about what’s happening on the Sun in real time.
NASA Space Weather: play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=gov.nasa.gsfc.iswa.NASASpaceWeatherApp.
Solaris Alpha: https://www.androidweather.net/download-solaris-alpha.html .
Videos
Journey into the Sun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqKFQ7z0Nuk . 2010 KQED Quest TV Program mostly about the Solar Dynamics Observatory spacecraft, its launch and capabilities, but with good general information on how the Sun works (12:24).
NASA | SDO: Three Years in Three Minutes--With Expert Commentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaCG0wAjJSY&src . Video of 3 years of observations of the Sun by the Solar Dynamics Observatory made into a speeded up movie, with commentary by solar physicist Alex Young (5:03).
Our Explosive Sun: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kI6YGSIJqrE . Video of a 2011 public lecture in the Silicon Valley Astronomy Lecture Series by Dr. Thomas Berger about solar activity and recent satellite missions to observe and understand it (1:20:22).
Space Weather Impacts: http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/education-and-outreach . Video from NOAA (2:47); https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBdd8cMH5jFmvVR2sZubIUzBO6JI0Pvx0 . Videos from the National Weather Service (four short videos) (14:41).
Space Weather: Storms on the Sun: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWsmp4o-qVg . Science bulletin from the American Museum of Natural History, giving the background to what happens on the Sun to cause space weather (6:10).
Sunspot Group AR 2339 Crosses the Sun: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap150629.html .
What Happens on the Sun Doesn’t Stay on the Sun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bg_gD2-ujCk . From the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: introduction to the Sun, space weather, its effects, and how we monitor it (4:56).


3.3.10: Haruki Murakami (1949- )
The Second Bakery Attack Japanese Contemporary Literature "The Second Bakery Attack" is a short story by Murakami Haruki (surname: Murakami), a critically acclaimed and popular Japanese writer. This short story, first published in English in Playboy magazine in 1985, is also part of The Elephant Vanishes (1993), a collection of Murakami's seventeen short stories in English translation. "The Second Bakery Attack" displays many of Murakami's signature styles and approaches, such as mixing realism and surrealism (or magical realism), the use of interior monologue, allusions to popular culture and Western culture, and postmodernist elements. Along with the metaphor of the insatiable hunger the couple feels, what is noteworthy in the story is the newly married couple's changing gender dynamics upon the (partial) release of the husband's "secret," and the impact on the husband's psychology of these gender dynamics. Murakami's other notable works include Men without Women (2014), IQ84 (2009-10), Kafka on the Shore (2002), The Wind-up Bird Chronicle (1994-95), Norwegian Wood (1987), and A Wild Sheep Chase (1982). Many of his works have been translated into English (and their publication years are different from the original publication years listed above) by such translators as Philip Gabriel, Jay Rubin, and Alfred Birnbaum. Murakami is also a translator himself, having translated Western literary works into Japanese. Consider while reading:
- What might be the significance of gender in this story?
- What elements of the story would you consider surreal?
- What might be the metaphorical implication of the couple's hunger?
Written by Kyounghye Kwon


4.5: The Whole Child – Developmental Domains/Areas
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- Cindy Stephens, Gina Peterson, Sharon Eyrich, & Jennifer Paris
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Pause to Reflect
When you think about young children, what images emerge for you? How do you see them? What are some words that you may use to identify them?
When thinking about children, what comes to your mind? Is it the way they engage with you? Is it their sense of adventure? Is it watching them try to climb a ladder? Is it trying to figure out what they may be thinking about when they have a certain look on their faces that they are not yet able to articulate? Is it their obvious curiosity and imagination? This is how we begin to think of the child as a whole, complex being. An integrated, interrelated series of parts that become the “whole.”
In the field of Early Childhood Education, we identify these areas of development as domains. These domains (areas) are as follows:
Physical Development
Physical or physical motor development includes their large or gross motor development, their fine motor development, and their perceptual-motor development. The large or gross motor development of children consists of their large motor groups – running, jumping, skipping, swinging with their arms – in other words, the muscle groups that are closer to the body. The fine motor development of children consists of the small motor groups, like writing with their hands, squishing sand in-between their toes – muscle groups that are further away from the body. The last area of physical development is the perceptual-motor – their ability to catch a ball, to use a paintbrush and paint to create something from their memory – in other words, it refers to a child’s developing ability to interact with their environment by combining the use of the senses and motor skills.
The first few years of life is dedicated to the heightened development of these skills. In the first year of life, they go from barely being able to hold their head up to walking upright. As many of you taking this course have varied experiences with children, this may be a refresher, but for some of you, this may be new information. It is crucial to the development of children, that they have many opportunities to use their bodies as their body is developing new pathways for success. In an early learning environment serving children from 0 – 5, there should be ample space and materials for children to explore and practice their emerging physical skills. This includes allowing them to take risks with their bodies allowing them to explore the possibilities. These risks afford children opportunities to feel that they are capable as well as gives them a sense of agency.
Cognitive-Language Development
Cognitive or brain development speaks to how we process information, our curiosity/imagination, long and short-term memory, problem-solving, critical thinking, language both receptive and expressive, beginning reading, computing skills, creativity, etc. In other words, how our brain develops to help us to think about and understand the world around us.
We often place much emphasis on this area of development to the determent of the other areas of development. They all work in concert. When thinking about developing the “whole child” we need to be mindful of providing experiences that promote all of their development, not just their cognitive development.
As with the other areas/domains of development, the first 5 years of life are important in establishing the foundation for learning. This includes providing lots of rich experiences for exploration, curiosity, imagination, use of materials and equipment (that also fosters physical development), opportunities for talking (even with pre-verbal babies), etc. The learning experiences that we provide for children will be discussed in Chapter 6 - Curriculum and Chapter 7 - Learning Environments. Both of those chapters are dedicated to looking at the learning experiences (curriculum) and the environments we set up to support children’s whole development.
Social-Emotional Development
Social-emotional development is the relationships that children have with themselves and others, the way they feel about themselves or their self-concept, the way they value themselves or their self-esteem, and he ability to express their feelings to themselves and others.
One of the important dispositions of being an early childhood professional is supporting children’s well-being. It is both a moral and ethical responsibility. By nature, children are trusting and look to the adults in their world to provide them with the necessary skills to be successful in their life’s journey. We can either elevate or diminish a child.
Spiritual Development
Spiritual development, or considering the “spirit” of the child, is something that is a more recent addition to thinking about “whole child” development. In a recent article entitled Supporting Spiritual Development in the Early Childhood Classroom by Amelia Richardson Dress, she cites emerging research that indicates the importance of considering this element of a child. “Spirit is the thing that makes us us. Spirituality is the way we connect our ‘inner us’ to everything else, including other people’s inner ‘usness.” [52] Our spiritual development is a part of our social-emotional development; however, we find it important to call this out specifically to guide our practice of supporting and elevating children’s uniqueness. In Chapter 6 Curriculum, it looks at how to support children’s curiosity. Curriculum that is based on children’s interests, engages their curiosity, is playful, and provides trust, elevates how children see themselves as dynamic, competent human beings. Simply by providing rich, open-ended materials and encouraging their natural desire to ask questions, we support a child’s sense of wonder.